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Zidane Names 23-Player France Squad for Nations League

By Drooid · Sep 19, 2026, 11:08 PM UTC · How we work

Summary

Story summary

Zinedine Zidane announced a 23-player France squad for the Nations League.
He omitted veteran forward Karim Benzema and midfielder N'Golo Kanté.
Zidane added Andy Diouf and Adrien Truffert, assigning Diouf to left back despite his Inter Milan midfield role.
Four newcomers—Esteban Lepaul, Jérémy Jacquet, Lucas Da Cunha, Guillaume Restes—earned their first France caps.
He kept the squad at 23, rejecting a larger roster like Germany’s 44-player list.

History

Historical Context

France’s 1998 World Cup triumph, achieved under Aimé Jacquet on 12 July 1998 with a 3-0 victory over Brazil at the 80,000-seat Stade de France, marked the nation’s first title and the first host-nation win since 1978 in a newly expanded 32-team tournament. Zidane’s pivotal role then set a precedent for selective squad cuts, a strategy echoed in today’s selection that drops veterans like Benzema and Kanté.

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Story summary

Zinedine Zidane announced a 23-player France squad for the Nations League.
He omitted veteran forward Karim Benzema and midfielder N'Golo Kanté.
Zidane added Andy Diouf and Adrien Truffert, assigning Diouf to left back despite his Inter Milan midfield role.
Four newcomers—Esteban Lepaul, Jérémy Jacquet, Lucas Da Cunha, Guillaume Restes—earned their first France caps.
He kept the squad at 23, rejecting a larger roster like Germany’s 44-player list.

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